It was November, it was brisk, but a beautiful day.  Despite all the
tragedies around us with weather related flooding and devastation, we
managed to turn out 16 kids.  One of the best parts were the new faces that
never played organized ball before.  I am proud to report that I appointed
two stand up kids as the leaders for this project.  Miles Eberhard and Quin
Maloney faced the challenge I asked of them and proved to be up for the
task.  We met and we talked about how they would accomplish what we needed
to do as a whole.  I gave them situations we needed to avoid for safety and
multi aged attendance.  They returned for our last meeting prior to the
event with answers to the possible scenarios and how they would handle them.
There was an unknown amount of kids coming from ages 5-12.  To their credit
they chose the not so pretty field that had two diamonds just in case we
needed to run two games at the same time.

It was adult free!  Moms and dads had a mini picnic and watched the kids
work it out.  Mikes and Quin chose the teams.  They chose the littlest kids
first and worked their way up.  It was inspiring how they made all the kids
feel included in the game.  More importantly, how they felt accepted by the
bigger kids that they want to emulate.  It wasn't about pitching as hard as
they could, it was about having fun and the bigger kids pitched
appropriately to their competition.  Miles suggested to avoid the catchers
position with unnecessary equipment and replace it with a lawn chair for
balls and strikes.    Everyone rotated positions and if I recall
correctly..after 4 innings the cold got to everyone and it ended with a
score that no one remembers except that it was a good time.

via stubencourier.com

Bath, NY -- On Friday June 17th Bath Little League in Bath, NY participated in the SUNY Youth Sports Institute "Sandlot Day" program.  Each year at the end of the regular little league season Bath offers an opportunity for those youth who are leaving the program due to age requirements the chance to play one last game.  This has been a game that the kids have come to enjoy, however this year the league chose to mix it up a little bit and to follow the SUNY Youth Sports Institutes Sandlot Day format, which offered the kids the ability to play baseball the way it use to be played.

Sandlot Day was developed by the State University of New York's Youth Sports Institute as a means to get away from Parents and Coaches having control of the game and giving it back to the kids.

The first Sandlot Day in Rondout Valley, New York was a big success. Despite high temperatures and a few All-Star teams still alive, 21 boys and girls from the towns of Rosendale and Marbletown came out on Sunday, July 10. The concept behind Sandlot Day is for kids to take over the fields for a day, running the games and choosing sides as they see fit, without grownups telling them what to do in the hope of fostering the fun aspect of the game and letting them experience the game the way their parents learned it. The idea was started by the SUNY Youth Sports Institute in Cortland.

The kids made up their own rules and games, even taking turns dressing up as the umpire and making rulings accordingly. Some of the older girls decided to play pickle with the younger kids. Only one band-aid had to be administered--and that was for a pre-existing boo boo. For supervising parents Bill Earl and Matthew Silverman, who served as mostly silent spectators, one of the highlights was a wooden bat a kid brought, making a distinct sound not heard on the fields during regularly scheduled games.

Rondout looks forward to hosting Sandlot Day again in 2012. Thanks to Lori Sadow for the photos and promotion and to all the parents who handled dropoff and the kids for running with the idea. 

On April 30th, Roland Park Baseball League in Baltimore, MD held their version of a Sandlot Day for their players.  The main difference from other Sandlot Day events was that, in Roland Park, they used umpires, kept the uniforms on, and actually counted the games in the standings.  The players, however, ran all other aspects of the game and, as league president Mike Stanley explains below, got to experience the free-play elements of governance, coordination, negotiation, conflict resolution, and experimentation.  So while this may not seem like a sandlot game in the traditional sense, it was both an enjoyable day for all as well as an opportunity to learn a few important lessons for the kids, coaches, and parents.

On Saturday, May 7, 2011, Fairport Little League kicked off their season with Sandlot games for the 5-7 year old rookies.   The games were held on 4 different fields at the Lyndon Road Baseball Complex.   With such young participants, it was hard to let them actually run the show, but the managers of the teams allowed players to make the lineups and decide who played the positions in the field.  The kids had a great time and are looking forward to the next sandlot game.

The 13 year olds and up will plan on having a Sandlot Day Event later in the season, at which there will be burgers and hot dogs for the players! These kids will completely coordinate the games as well as make the necessary adjustments.

by Kevin Christofora
Woodstock Little League President

Baseball, Hot Dogs, and Apple Pie: What is more American than that?

Kevin Christofora, President of Woodstock Little League has conjured up something that is basically a little league reunion. Since the inception of Woodstock Little League in 1956, there had never been an "Old Timers Day" like the Yankees have every year. Woodstock was fortunate to still have over half the team and the founder of the league available to show up. Working together with the historical society and the local papers...the dream began.

Old pictures began surfacing around town. Old trophies and uniforms came out of the attics. Everyday conversations around town buzzed with baseball. No matter what people are doing with their lives, I am sure most would like to go back to their little league days and just play ball.

Now that there is an Old Timers' Day, the people of Woodstock, NY get their chance.

by Chris Vincent
SUNY Youth Sports Institute

Baldwinsville, NY - I have a friend who gets an idea and runs with it. He started a DJ business at the age of 14 and was DJing sweet 16's when he was 15. He now has a commercial driving license to drive for a document destruction company called CINTAS, has his own garbage business called White Glove Waste And Recycling, and has a well respected DJ business called "The Professional Sound of CNY".

In the summer of 2010, while sitting around with nothing to do, he got a brilliant idea to get a baseball game together.  We were all at the age of 22 or 23 so you would think it would have been difficult to get everyone together at one time, but my entrepreneurial friend got right on the horn and called a friend of ours that had a very important resource: Baseball Fields.  Nolan Reeves is a friend of ours that we graduated with and his family owns Reeves farms, which is a very successful farm company in Baldwinsville, New York. They sponsor the field system for the Baldwinsville Little League.

So now that we got the go-ahead from Nolan to use the field, and of course he would be participating, it was time to spread the word. The best time we found to play America's pastime was on a Sunday afternoon, when people were most likely to be available for a spontaneous recreational activity. The first Sunday we corralled about 12 of our friends to participate, dusted off our mitts, and headed down to the field. 

Binghamton, NY - On Wednesday, August 4th, West Corners Little League held its annual wiffle-ball game for 12-year-old baseball and softball players.  This year, however, the end-of-the-season event had a "sandlot" theme to it.  West Corners Little League President Jim Silkworth said, "We kept the parents away from the field, and except for very few ground rules the kids ran the game themselves.  It worked out really well."
 
Silkworth is stepping down from the board as his son moves on from Little League, but he has left the program in good standing for his successor.  Last March, 42 coaches from the league were certified through the SUNY Youth Sports Institute, an organization that will continue to certify new coaches in the league each year.  Furthermore, the league intends to offer a "Sandlot Day" to all its participants in future seasons.  "It [Sandlot Day] could be expanded next year to set aside a day for all the regular season teams to do the same thing, but with "real" ball," said Silkworth.

by Mark Hyman
March 26, 2010

The heat of Texas in July could not prevent 90 kids from the Lake Travis Youth Association (LTYA) from showing up to the baseball fields for an evening of unadulterated, player-governed, sandlot-style baseball.   Greg Sones, LTYA baseball board member, saw a New York Times article online about the SUNY Youth Sports Institute and its idea that leagues take one day out of each season for the players to regulate their own games and call it "Sandlot Day". 

A few months later, LTYA baseball players were self-dividing among three different fields, throwing together their own teams, setting their own line-ups, and keeping their own score, kind of.  One 7-year-old participant, when asked about the score, responded, "We didn't really keep score, but we know who won."  Clearly, scorekeeping was not as important as the joy of playing for the sake of playing, and while the teams were in constant flux with players coming and going, why would it matter?  The kids who played ranged from 7 to 12 years old and some of them did not even play baseball on a team this past spring, or ever.  Sandlot Day coordinator, Sones, stated that "For some of the kids, it was their first time to play baseball."  What a great introduction to the game the way it should be played. 

Photos from the event

This day offers the opportunity for children to do their own thing
By Don Weiskopf, Publisher, Baseball Play America

Throughout America this summer, Sandlot Day 2010 is giving young ball players in organized youth leagues the gift of pick-up baseball that their coaches and parents experienced. Sandlot baseball, backyard ball, street ball, stickball and other low organized games was the type of baseball played by generations of kids. The common thread was - no adults were involved. From this one day they will receive personal memories that last a lifetime, a sense of ownership of the game, an ability to organize themselves, and so much more.

Everybody played, rules fit the game, and ground rules fit the patch of open space. The game ended when it got dark or the ball was lost. Many coaches today would be helped by learning about, or remembering the importance of the sandlot experience. There were lessons learned on the sandlot, not just about baseball. Memories were made as well and sandlot memories last a lifetime. Most of our children's playtime is organized. When a sport can offer its players a gift like Sandlot Day, it ultimately increases their passion for the game and introduces a child to pick-up games.

Of the many youngsters who participated in the Sandlot Day 2010 Philipstown Little League, President Eddie Barry was impressed on how creative and fair the kids made the games. The only adult supervision at the games was during the Noon, 2 p.m. and 4 p.m. time slots. Other than that, the kids had full range of the ball fields in Philipstown. The kids elected their own managers, captains and umpires. The older children even included minor league players with players from the majors.

Friday, 09 July 2010 - SyossetJerico Tribune

One of the visions of Syosset Baseball Association is to work closely with managers and coaches to ensure that they provide the proper instruction and discipline to players on and off the field, both in-game and in practice situations.

To this vision and goal, Mr. Robert Jolson, President of Syosset Baseball Association, contacted Youth Sports New York to meet with the Board of Syosset Baseball Association. After the meeting, it was determined that Syosset Baseball Association would provide, at no cost to each participating manager and coach, a Manager/Coach certification ensuring that these volunteers on the fields have been professionally guided on how to help our kids.

Youth Sports New York, through the direction of SUNY, feels that sports should be fun with guidelines in place, but that it isn't all about winning. Often, this is taken out of context and winning becomes the primary reason and motivation for kids in sports.

Youth Sports New York felt that before the world of today, many of the adults and parents who used to go to the local park to see who was playing for a pickup game would go just to have fun. Why not bring this to the kids with a designated day called "Sandlot Day"?

All Syosset Baseball Association players, from A Division through AAA Division, were invited down to the park from 11 a.m. to dusk, as the park would close for a pickup game. There would only be one adult supervisor, but the game would be put back into the kid's hands. Pick your own teams; make your own rules, no measuring of bases, no measuring of the pitcher's mound, etc.

On Sunday, June 13, Syosset Baseball Association declared Sandlot Day at Michael Lewis Wolkis Field. As the 11 a.m. time approached, the kids started walking in from all parts of the park and parents' cars started coming towards the circle to drop their kids off.

The kids were provided with the bare minimum from SBA: a few baseballs, a few bats, a set of rubber bases and a few batting helmets, just in case someone didn't have one, and most importantly, a field. Mr. Jolson addressed the kids, telling them what he used to do as a kid and this was their day to choose sides, make the rules and play to have fun. With that, the kids started pairing off as Mr. Jolson left the field to tell the parents what he told the kids, and what to anticipate as the day unfolded.

On May 29, the Carman Little League in Rotterdam, NY held a Sandlot Day that attracted around 30 kids of various ages.  Jed Ingersoll, president of the league, was introduced to the idea through a New York Times article citing the SUNY Youth Sports Institute and its idea for taking one day out of the season to give the game completely to the kids.  The league firmly believes in the need for adults to back off every once in a while so the players can build a sense of ownership and, subsequently, a passion for the game.  "Today there is so much parent involvement.  Kids are constantly told what to do, how to do it, and when to do it. We wanted to give the kids a chance to figure things out for themselves" said Ingersoll. 

To kick off this event, the Carman little leaguers picked captains, chose up sides, and took the field, some in their team uniforms but most in street clothes.  One parent, watching from the bleachers, was surprised at how capable the kids were of picking their own teams without any hard feelings.  The parents also enjoyed watching their kids play with new teammates and mixed ages.  Ingersoll was pleased to see that "the older kids gave the little kids confidence by playing with them and allowing them to play all positions.  They didn't always stick them in the outfield."  After nearly three hours of playing, they had to wrap it up, though the participants insisted that the league put another one together in August.  The day was a great success and the Carman Little League intends to make Sandlot Day a regular part of each season to come.    

Sandlot All-Stars in a league of their own; local youths keep it simple on the baseball diamond

By PHIL FORTE
For The Saratogian

SARATOGA SPRINGS -- No registration fees, insurance waivers, or expensive jerseys.

No lineups, aces, batting averages or on base percentages.

No ERA's, win-loss records, errors or state championships to worry about either.

Just some good old-fashioned baseball.

It was last summer when a few local dads decided that once their children's little league season had come to a conclusion, baseball season was not over yet.

Dan Jolie, Bill Bergan and Mike Sefransky all had the idea to advance their children's baseball season into the summer, on their own terms, though.

It was then when the Sandlot All-Stars were born.

We had a great day yesterday.  The weather was perfect, and we had about 30 kids show up for Sandlot Day.

We scheduled major leaguers from 12:00pm-2:00pm, and Minor leaguers from 2:00pm-4:00pm.  A handful of Major leaguers stayed the entire 4 hours.  We supplied a couple of bags of equipment, and even brought wiffleball sets, but the kids wanted to play hardball.

The cool thing was watching the kids, especially the major leaguers, do everything themselves - picking captains, choosing sides, setting lineups, etc.  The kids let each other hit too, rather than trying to just blow pitches past each other.  The major leaguers were really good with the younger kids - moving up to pitch to them and letting them hit as well.

The BCLL board approved funding hot dogs and drinks for the kids, so we kept everyone fed during the event.

Many parents stayed to watch, and I think everyone involved really enjoyed the day and thought it was a great concept.  I would expect more kids to participate next year.

Thanks again for the supplies and for pushing the idea.

- Derek, Bear Country Little League